Plastic Composite Material Panel and Manufacturing Method Thereof

ABSTRACT

An embodiment plastic composite material panel includes an outer plate portion bent in a predetermined shape and configured to be bonded to a vehicle body frame through an adhesive, and a material filling portion integrally formed with the outer plate portion, the material filling portion being thicker than the outer plate portion.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of Korean Patent Application No.10-2021-0003308, filed in the Korean Intellectual Property Office onJan. 11, 2021, which application is hereby incorporated herein byreference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

An embodiment of the present invention relates to a plastic compositematerial panel and a manufacturing method thereof.

BACKGROUND

Recently, the vehicle industry has been introducing a new concept offuture mobility vision for realizing a human-centered and dynamic futurecity. One of these future mobility solutions is a purpose built vehicle(PBV) as purpose-based mobility.

The PBV is an environment-friendly mobility solution that provides acustomized service for passengers during a period in which they travelon the ground to their destination, and it may use electric vehicle(EV)-based artificial intelligence to set an optimal route for eachsituation and may also group-drive.

A vehicle body of the PBV includes an under body (referred to as arolling chassis or skateboard in the art) and an upper body mounted onthe under body. Here, the upper body may be configured of a space frame.

The upper body, in order to reduce a weight of the vehicle body,includes a vehicle body frame made of an aluminum or steel material, anda plastic composite material panel bonded to the body frame with anadhesive.

Such a plastic composite material panel is manufactured by molding theplastic composite original material into a shape set through a mold.However, in the prior art, a bent shape portion (undercut portion) ofthe plastic composite material panel is caught in a molding part of themold, and thus there is a problem that the plastic composite materialpanel may not be smoothly taken out from the mold.

The above information disclosed in this Background section is only forenhancement of understanding of the background of the invention, andtherefore it may contain information that does not form the prior artthat is already known to a person of ordinary skill in the art.

SUMMARY

An embodiment of the present invention relates to a plastic compositematerial panel and a manufacturing method thereof. Particularembodiments relate to a plastic composite material panel bonded to avehicle body of a purpose built vehicle (PBV) and a manufacturing methodthereof.

Embodiments of the present invention provide a plastic compositematerial panel and a manufacturing method thereof that may provideexcellent moldability and prevent a cross-section of a vehicle bodyframe from being reduced.

An embodiment of the present invention provides a plastic compositematerial panel including (i) an outer plate portion bent in apredetermined shape and bonded to a vehicle body frame through anadhesive, and (ii) a material filling portion integrally formed with theouter plate portion and thicker than the outer plate portion.

The plastic composite material panel may further include a first bondingflange integrally formed with a lower portion of the outer plate portionand bonded to a first flange portion extending from a body portion ofthe vehicle body frame through an adhesive.

A second bonding flange may be integrally formed with the materialfilling portion.

The second bonding flange may be bonded to a second flange portionextending from the body portion of the vehicle body frame through anadhesive.

The outer plate portion and the material filling portion may beconfigured of a side outer panel that is able to be bonded to thevehicle body frame through an adhesive.

A roof panel flange portion made of a plastic composite material may bejoined to the second bonding flange through an adhesive.

The material filling portion may be bonded to the body portion of thevehicle body frame through an adhesive.

The material filling portion may be bonded to a protruding surfaceextending upward from the body portion of the vehicle body frame throughan adhesive.

The material filling portion may be connected through a seal strip to aroof panel flange portion bonded to the second flange portion extendingfrom the body portion of the vehicle body frame through an adhesive.

Another embodiment of the present invention provides a manufacturingmethod of a plastic composite material panel bonded to a vehicle bodyframe including (a) providing a gel type of plastic composite material,(b) loading the gel type of plastic composite material onto a fixed diehaving a first molding surface of a flat shape for molding a materialfilling portion and a second molding surface for molding an outer plateportion, (c) combining a first movable die having a third moldingsurface for molding the material filling portion and a fourth moldingsurface for molding the outer plate portion and a second movable diehaving a molding groove for molding the material filling portion to thefixed die, (d) forming the outer plate portion by the second and fourthmolding surfaces, and integrally forming the material filling portionthicker than the outer plate portion with the outer plate portion by thefirst and third molding surfaces and the molding groove.

The manufacturing method of the plastic composite material panel mayfurther include (e) releasing the first and second movable dies from thefixed die and taking out the plastic composite material panel.

In the (e) step, the plastic composite material panel may be taken outthrough the first molding surface in a moving direction of the firstmovable die.

According to the embodiments of the present invention, it is possible toincrease moldability of a plastic composite material panel, to secure aquality of the plastic composite material panel, to secure a mountingspace of a roof panel and the like, and to expand a cross-section of avehicle body frame.

In addition, effects that may be obtained or expected from embodimentsof the present invention are directly or suggestively described in thefollowing detailed description. That is, various effects expected fromembodiments of the present invention will be described in the followingdetailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These drawings are for reference only in describing exemplaryembodiments of the present invention, and therefore, the technical ideaof the present invention should not be limited to the accompanyingdrawings.

FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a vehicle body applied to an embodimentof the present invention.

FIG. 2 illustrates a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A of FIG. 1illustrating a plastic composite material panel according to anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 illustrates a cross-sectional view taken along line B-B of FIG. 1illustrating a plastic composite material panel according to anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 to FIG. 6 are drawings for explaining a manufacturing method of aplastic composite material panel according to an embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 7 illustrates a cross-sectional view taken along line C-C of FIG. 1illustrating a plastic composite material panel according to anotherembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 illustrates a mold for molding a plastic composite material panelaccording to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 illustrates a cross-sectional view taken along line D-D of FIG. 1illustrating a plastic composite material panel according to anotherembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 illustrates a cross-sectional view taken along line E-E of FIG.1 illustrating a plastic composite material panel according to anotherembodiment of the present invention.

The following elements may be used in connection with the drawings todescribe embodiments of the present invention.

1: under body 3: upper body 5: chassis frame 7: vehicle body frame 7a:front body portion 7b: rear body portion 7c: protruding surface 7d: rearextension member 7e: panel mounting surface 8: side outer panel 9: roofpanel 9a: roof panel flange portion 10: outer plate portion 11: firstbonding flange 30: material filling portion 31: second bonding flange41: adhesive 51: first flange portion 52: second flange portion 61:windshield glass 71: gel type plastic composite material 81: fixed die82: first molding surface 83: second molding surface 84: first movabledie 85: second movable die 86: third molding surface 87: fourth moldingsurface 88: first molding groove 89: second molding groove 91: sealstrip 100, 200: plastic composite material panel

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF ILLUSTRATIVE EMBODIMENTS

The present invention will be described more fully hereinafter withreference to the accompanying drawings, in which embodiments of theinvention are shown. As those skilled in the art would realize, thedescribed embodiments may be modified in various different ways, allwithout departing from the spirit or scope of the present invention.

In order to clearly describe the present invention, parts that areirrelevant to the description are omitted, and identical or similarconstituent elements throughout the specification are denoted by thesame reference numerals.

Since the size and thickness of each configuration shown in the drawingsare arbitrarily shown for convenience of description, the presentinvention is not necessarily limited to configurations illustrated inthe drawings, and in order to clearly illustrate several parts andareas, enlarged thicknesses are shown.

Further, in the following detailed description, terms of elements, whichare in the same relationship, are divided into “the first”, “thesecond”, etc., but the present invention is not necessarily limited tothe order in the following description.

Throughout the specification, unless explicitly described to thecontrary, the word “comprise” and variations such as “comprises” or“comprising” will be understood to imply the inclusion of statedelements but not the exclusion of any other elements.

Furthermore, terms such as “. . . unit”, “. . . means”, “. . . part”, “.. . portion”, and “. . . member” described in the specification mean aunit of a comprehensive configuration having at least one function oroperation.

FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a vehicle body applied to an embodimentof the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1, a plastic composite material panel 100 according toan embodiment of the present invention may be applied to a vehicle bodyof, for example, an electric vehicle-based purpose built vehicle (PBV).

Here, the PBV may be an environment-friendly vehicle that provides acustomized service required for an occupant during a time it takes totravel on the ground to a destination. The PBV may set the optimal pathfor each situation, enable group driving, and furthermore, may be abox-type of vehicle with a large interior space.

The vehicle body of the PBV may include an under body 1 of a skateboardtype and an upper body 3 as a monocoque type of vehicle body mounted onthe under body 1.

The under body 1 is also referred to as a rolling chassis in the art,and may include a chassis frame 5 on which a battery assembly (not shownin the drawing) may be mounted.

In addition, the upper body 3 is a body coupled onto the under body 1,and may include a vehicle body frame 7 forming a cabin. The upper body 3may be, for example, a space frame in which a frame is formed byconnecting a plurality of members such as a steel plate or a pipe.

In the art, a vehicle width direction (full width direction) is referredto as an L direction, a vehicle body length direction (front/reardirection or full length direction of a vehicle body) is referred to asa T direction, and a height direction of a vehicle body is referred toas an H direction. However, in the embodiment of the present invention,instead of setting the L, T, and H directions as described above as thereference directions, the following constituent elements will bedescribed by setting the reference directions to a vehicle widthdirection, a vehicle body front/rear direction, and a verticaldirection.

In addition, hereinafter, an end (one side end or the other end) may bedefined as any one end, or may be defined as a predetermined portion(one end portion or the other end portion) including the end.

On the other hand, the vehicle body frame 7 of the upper body 3 isformed by connecting frames made of a steel or aluminum material, andmay include a side inner mounted on both sides of the chassis frame 5 ofthe under body 1 and a roof rail connected to the side inner portion.

In the vehicle body frame 7, the plastic composite material panel 100according to the embodiment of the present invention is bonded to a sidesurface thereof, and a roof panel 9 made of a plastic composite materialis bonded to an upper surface thereof. Hereinafter, a body portionpositioned at the front in the vehicle body frame 7 is referred to as afront body portion 7 a, and a body portion positioned at the reartherein is referred to as a rear body portion 7 b.

The plastic composite material is a reinforcing material impregnatedwith a resin in a fiber material, and may be molded into a predeterminedshape by a mold. Further, the plastic composite material may be one offiber reinforced plastic (FRP), carbon fiber reinforced plastic (CFRP),and glass fiber reinforced plastic (GFRP).

The plastic composite material panel 100 according to the embodiment ofthe present invention may be configured of a side outer panel 8 bondedto the vehicle body frame 7 through an adhesive. The plastic compositematerial panel 100 has good moldability, and has a structure that mayprevent the cross-section of the vehicle body frame 7 from beingreduced.

FIG. 2 illustrates a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A of FIG. 1illustrating a plastic composite material panel according to anembodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 2, the plastic composite material panel 100 accordingto the embodiment of the present invention includes an outer plateportion 10, and a material filling portion 30.

In the embodiment of the present invention, the outer plate portion 10is a portion bonded through an adhesive 41 to an outer side of thevehicle body frame 7, and is molded into a bent shape corresponding toan outer of the vehicle body frame 7.

A first bonding flange 11 integrally formed with the outer plate portion10 is formed under the outer plate portion 10. The first bonding flange11 is bonded to a first flange portion 51 extending from the front bodyportion 7 a of the vehicle body frame 7 through the adhesive 41.

In the embodiment of the present invention, the material filling portion30 is thicker than the outer plate portion 10, and is integrally formedwith the outer plate portion 10. Further, the material filling portion30 is integrally formed with the outer plate portion 10 at an upperportion of the outer plate portion 10 based on the drawing.

The material filling portion 30 is a portion in which a fiber materialis stacked in a predetermined shape on a surface of the outer plateportion 10 based on the surface thereof, and is provided in a roundedshape in the surface of the outer plate portion 10.

A second bonding flange 31 having the same thickness as the outer plateportion 10 is integrally formed with the material filling portion 30.The second bonding flange 31 is bonded to a second flange portion 52extending from the front body portion 7 a of the vehicle body frame 7through the adhesive 41. An edge portion of a windshield glass 61 may bebonded to the second bonding flange 31 through the adhesive 41.

Meanwhile, as shown in FIG. 3, a flange portion 9 a of the roof panel 9mentioned above may be bonded to the second bonding flange 31 throughthe adhesive 41. In addition, the edge portion of the windshield glass61 may be bonded to the flange portion 9 a of the roof panel 9 throughthe adhesive 41.

Hereinafter, a manufacturing method of the plastic composite materialpanel 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention configuredas described above will be described with reference to the accompanyingdrawings.

FIG. 4 to FIG. 6 are drawings for explaining a manufacturing method of aplastic composite material panel according to an embodiment of thepresent invention.

Referring to FIG. 4, first, an embodiment of the present inventionprovides a gel-type plastic composite material 71 made of a fibermaterial.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 5, the gel-type plastic composite material71 is loaded on a fixed die 81.

Here, the fixed die 81 includes a first molding surface 82 having a flatshape for forming the material filling portion 30, and a second moldingsurface 83 for forming the outer plate portion 10.

Next, as shown in FIG. 6, first and second movable dies 84 and 85 arecombined with the fixed die 81, and the gel-type plastic compositematerial 71 is pressed.

The first movable die 84 includes a third molding surface 86 for formingthe material filling portion 30, and a fourth molding surface 87 forforming the outer plate portion 10.

In addition, the second movable die 85 includes a first molding groove88 for forming the material filling portion 30, and a second moldinggroove 89 for forming the second bonding flange 31.

Therefore, in the embodiment of the present invention, the outer plateportion 10 may be molded by the second and fourth molding surfaces 83and 87, and by the first and third molding surfaces 82 and 86 and thefirst molding groove 88, the material filling portion 30 thicker thanthe outer plate portion 10 may be molded in the plastic compositematerial panel 100 integrally formed with the outer plate portion 10.

In the embodiment of the present invention, the second bonding flange 31integrally connected to the material filling portion 30 may be molded inthe plastic composite material panel 100 by the second molding groove 89of the second movable die 85 and the first molding surface 82 of thefixed die 81.

In the state of molding the plastic composite material panel 100 asdescribed above, in the embodiment of the present invention, the firstand second movable dies 84 and 85 are released from the fixed die 81,and the plastic composite material panel 100 is taken out.

In the embodiment of the present invention, the plastic compositematerial panel 100 may be taken out along a moving direction of thefirst movable die 84 through the first molding surface 82 of the fixeddie 81.

In this case, in the embodiment of the present invention, since noundercut is formed in the plastic composite material panel 100 byintegrally molding the above-mentioned material filling portion 30 tothe outer plate portion 10, the plastic composite material panel 100 maybe smoothly taken out through the first molding surface 82 of the fixeddie 81.

The plastic composite material molding mold including the fixed die 81,the first movable die 84, and the second movable die 85 as describedabove consists of a mold device of a known technology for molding aplastic composite material panel of a predetermined shape, so a moredetailed description will be omitted herein.

According to the plastic composite material panel 100 according to theembodiment of the present invention as described so far, it isintegrally formed in the outer plate portion 10, and includes thematerial filling portion 30 that is thicker than the outer plate portion10.

Therefore, in the embodiment of the present invention, the plasticcomposite material panel 100 may be easily taken out from the moldduring the molding process of the plastic composite material panel 100through the mold. Therefore, according to the embodiment of the presentinvention, it is possible to increase the moldability of the plasticcomposite material panel 100, and to secure the quality of the plasticcomposite material panel 100.

In addition, according to the embodiment of the present invention, asthe material filling portion 30 is integrally formed with the outerplate portion 10, when considering the thickness increase and theadhesive thickness compared to a steel or aluminum material, it ispossible to secure a mounting space for the roof panel and thewindshield glass without reducing the cross-section of the vehicle bodyframe 7.

Therefore, according to the embodiment of the present invention, sinceit is not necessary to reduce the cross-section of the vehicle bodyframe 7, it is possible to prevent deterioration of a vehicle front, anoffset, and small overlap collision performance.

FIG. 7 illustrates a cross-sectional view taken along line C-C of FIG. 1illustrating a plastic composite material panel according to anotherembodiment of the present invention. In the drawing, the same referencenumerals are denoted to the same components as in the above embodiment.

Referring to FIG. 7, in a plastic composite material panel 200 accordingto another embodiment of the present invention, the second bondingflange 31 described above in the previous embodiment is removed, and thematerial filling portion 30 bonded to the front body portion 7 a of thevehicle body frame 7 may be formed.

The first bonding flange ii of the outer plate portion 10 is bonded tothe first flange portion 51 of the front body portion 7 a through theadhesive 41. In addition, the material filling portion 30 according tothe embodiment of the present invention is bonded to the front bodyportion 7 a of the vehicle body frame 7 through the adhesive 41.

The flange portion of the roof panel and the edge portion of thewindshield glass, while not shown in the drawing, may be bonded to thesecond flange portion 52 of the front body portion 7 a through anadhesive.

Therefore, in another embodiment of the present invention, byconfiguring the material filling portion 30 of a flangeless type, it ispossible to secure the mounting space of the roof panel and thewindshield glass for the vehicle body frame 7.

On the other hand, the plastic composite material panel 200 in which theflangeless type of the material filling portion 30 is formed on theouter plate portion 10 as described above may be molded through aplastic composite material molding mold including, as shown in FIG. 8,the fixed die 81, the first movable die 84, and the second movable die85.

The plastic composite material molding mold basically includes theconstituent elements described in the previous embodiment, and themolding groove portion for forming the second bonding flange describedin the previous embodiment on the fixed die 81 and the second movabledie 85 is removed.

FIG. 9 illustrates a cross-sectional view taken along line D-D of FIG. 1illustrating a plastic composite material panel according to anotherembodiment of the present invention. In the drawing, the same referencenumerals are denoted to the same components as in the above embodiment.

Referring to FIG. 9, the plastic composite material panel 200 accordingto another embodiment of the present invention may include the materialfilling portion 30 bonded to a protruding surface 7 c extending upwardfrom the front body portion 7 a of the vehicle body frame 7.

Here, the first bonding flange ii of the outer plate portion 10 isbonded to the first flange portion 51 of the front body portion 7 athrough the adhesive 41. In addition, the material filling portion 30 isbonded to the protruding surface 7 c of the front body portion 7 athrough the adhesive 41. Therefore, in the embodiment of the presentinvention, by bonding the material filling portion 30 to the protrudingsurface 7 c of the front body portion 7 a, it is possible to increasethe cross-section of the vehicle body frame 7.

Further, the flange portion 9 a of the roof panel 9 may be bonded to thesecond flange portion 52 of the front body portion 7 a through theadhesive 41. The flange portion 9 a of the roof panel 9 is connected tothe material filling portion 30 through a seal strip 91. Accordingly, inthe embodiment of the present invention, it is possible to secure thethickness of the flange portion 9 a while securing the mounting space ofthe roof panel 9.

FIG. 10 illustrates a cross-sectional view taken along line E-E of FIG.1 illustrating a plastic composite material panel according to anotherembodiment of the present invention. In the drawing, the same referencenumerals are denoted to the same components as in the above embodiment.

Referring to FIG. 10, the plastic composite material panel 200 accordingto another embodiment of the present invention may include the materialfilling portion 30 bonded to the rear body portion 7 b of the vehiclebody frame 7.

Here, the rear body portion 7 b may include a rear extension member 7 d.A panel mounting surface 7 e is formed on an upper portion of the rearbody portion 7 b. In the embodiment of the present invention, thematerial filling portion 30 is bonded to the panel mounting surface 7 ethrough the adhesive 41.

Accordingly, in the embodiment of the present invention, a loadingproperty of the plastic composite material panel 200 may be secured bybonding the material filling portion 30 to the panel mounting surface 7e of the rear body portion 7 b.

The remaining configuration and effect of the plastic composite materialpanel 200 according to another embodiment of the present invention asdescribed above are the same as the previous embodiment, so a detaileddescription thereof will be omitted.

While this invention has been described in connection with what ispresently considered to be practical embodiments, it is to be understoodthat the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments, but, onthe contrary, is intended to cover various modifications and equivalentarrangements included within the spirit and scope of the appendedclaims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A plastic composite material panel comprising: anouter plate portion bent in a predetermined shape and configured to bebonded to a vehicle body frame through an adhesive; and a materialfilling portion integrally formed with the outer plate portion, thematerial filling portion being thicker than the outer plate portion. 2.The plastic composite material panel of claim 1, further comprising afirst bonding flange integrally formed with a lower portion of the outerplate portion and configured to be bonded to a first flange portionextending from a body portion of the vehicle body frame through theadhesive.
 3. The plastic composite material panel of claim 1, furthercomprising a second bonding flange integrally formed with the materialfilling portion, wherein the second bonding flange is configured to bebonded to a second flange portion extending from a body portion of thevehicle body frame through the adhesive.
 4. The plastic compositematerial panel of claim 3, further comprising a roof panel flangeportion comprising a plastic composite material bonded to the secondbonding flange through the adhesive.
 5. The plastic composite materialpanel of claim 1, wherein the outer plate portion and the materialfilling portion form a side outer panel configured to be bonded to thevehicle body frame through the adhesive.
 6. The plastic compositematerial panel of claim 1, wherein the material filling portion isconfigured to be bonded to a body portion of the vehicle body framethrough the adhesive.
 7. The plastic composite material panel of claim6, wherein: the outer plate portion and the material filling portionform a side outer panel configured to be bonded to the vehicle bodyframe; and the material filling portion is configured to be bonded to aprotruding surface extending upward from the body portion of the vehiclebody frame through the adhesive.
 8. The plastic composite material panelof claim 7, wherein the material filling portion is configured to beconnected through a seal strip to a roof panel flange portion bonded toa second flange portion extending from the body portion of the vehiclebody frame through the adhesive.
 9. A manufacturing method of a plasticcomposite material panel, comprising: loading a gel type plasticcomposite material onto a fixed die having a first molding surface of aflat shape for molding a material filling portion and a second moldingsurface for molding an outer plate portion; combining a first movabledie having a third molding surface for molding the material fillingportion and a fourth molding surface for molding the outer plate portionand a second movable die having a molding groove for molding thematerial filling portion to the fixed die; forming the outer plateportion by the second and fourth molding surfaces; and integrallyforming the material filling portion with the outer plate portion by thefirst and third molding surfaces and the molding groove, wherein thematerial filling portion is thicker than the outer plate portion. 10.The manufacturing method of claim 9, further comprising: releasing thefirst and the second movable dies from the fixed die; and taking out theplastic composite material panel.
 11. The manufacturing method of claim10, wherein taking out the plastic composite material panel comprisestaking out the plastic composite material panel through the firstmolding surface in a moving direction of the first movable die.
 12. Avehicle comprising: a vehicle body frame comprising a front body portionand a rear body portion; and a plastic composite material panelcomprising: an outer plate portion bent in a predetermined shape andbonded to the vehicle body frame through an adhesive; and a materialfilling portion integrally formed with the outer plate portion, thematerial filling portion being thicker than the outer plate portion. 13.The vehicle of claim 12, further comprising a first bonding flangeintegrally formed with a lower portion of the outer plate portion andbonded to a first flange portion extending from the front body portionof the vehicle body frame through the adhesive.
 14. The vehicle of claim12, further comprising a second bonding flange integrally formed withthe material filling portion, wherein the second bonding flange isbonded to a second flange portion extending from the front body portionof the vehicle body frame through the adhesive.
 15. The vehicle of claim14, further comprising a roof panel flange portion comprising a plasticcomposite material bonded to the second bonding flange through theadhesive.
 16. The vehicle of claim 14, further comprising a windshieldglass, wherein an edge portion of the windshield glass is bonded to thesecond bonding flange through the adhesive.
 17. The vehicle of claim 12,wherein the plastic composite material panel is a side outer panelbonded to the vehicle body frame through the adhesive.
 18. The vehicleof claim 12, wherein the material filling portion is bonded to the frontbody portion of the vehicle body frame through the adhesive.
 19. Thevehicle of claim 18, wherein: the plastic composite material panel is aside outer panel bonded to the vehicle body frame; and the materialfilling portion is bonded to a protruding surface extending upward fromthe front body portion of the vehicle body frame through the adhesive.20. The vehicle of claim 19, wherein the material filling portion isconnected through a seal strip to a roof panel flange portion bonded toa second flange portion extending from the front body portion of thevehicle body frame through the adhesive.